Who knew PETA had a sense of humor — or one that I could relate to? Credit where it’s due.
Pet Travel Insurance: A Policy for the Future?
Pet travel insurance doesn’t currently exist in the U.S. — at least not the kind that’s comparable to human travel insurance, where you lay down a one-time fee to bet on the contingencies of a single trip. But consider that, not long ago, pet health insurance wasn’t very common, and pet travel was not nearly…
Go Pet Friendly: Vacation as Vocation
You’ve heard the cliches: Living the dream. Tough work if you can get it. Live the life you’ve imagined. They’re all true in the case of Rod and Amy Burkert, who are traveling around the country with their two dogs, Ty and Buster, finding pet friendly places to recommend for their website, GoPetFriendly.com. The Trip…
Pet Adoption Videos That Don’t Make Me Want to Kill Myself, #8
I wasn’t sure how I felt about these two videos, both from the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. They didn’t make me want to kill myself, but they did kind of weird me out with their notion of dogs as substitute humans. I also thought the first was vaguely homophobic…
Striding Determinedly
People who have known me for a long time know that I have the worst sense of direction in the world. It’s almost pathologically bad, a kind of directional dyslexia. But that never interfered with my New York-bred fast and confident stride. Out-of-town friends who would visit me in Manhattan were often appalled to discover…
Pet Travel Trends
Good news for someone who is writing a pet travel guide. Or trying to. My thanks to Deborah Flick, who forwarded me the press release and graphic from Sweden, where she is watching chickens. And thanks of course to PetRelocation.com, who put together the survey. I was very pleased to see that 71% of people…
Healthy & Economical Dog Treats: Not-So-Wordless Wednesday
I recently got an email from a blog follower, Renee Bedford, who wrote: “In past years we used to feed our dogs a combination of table scraps and commercial dog food without taking note of their nutrient requirements. Thankfully, regular trips to the vet opened our eyes to the dangers of an improper diet and…
Dogs + Babies: New Formulas for Success
If you’re like me, you’ve often gotten these email pleas: “Friends of mine have to give up their dog because he’s growling at the new baby. Can you help them find him a new home?” They usually go on to detail what a wonderful dog he is, and how heartbroken the family feels. I always…
Spay & Neuter with a Smile, #5
A surprising number of people, even educated ones, think that neutering changes the personality of a pet. The Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals confronts this stereotype with their trademark sense of humor in this PSA. I just love the sex kitten cameos.
Pet Charities Lose: Where There’s a Will But No Way
Photo by David Rentas/NY Post The late hotel heiress Leona Helmsley may have been known as the “Queen of Mean,” but she had many fans in the animal welfare community, including such influential pet charities as the ASPCA, The Humane Society of the United States, and Maddie’s Fund. Sadly, the combined clout of those groups…